


Of the Twenty-Fifth of December and a Merry Little Christmas

by Thegreenofyoureyes



Series: Christmas Fics 2015 [25]
Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Fluff, Kidfic, M/M, Merry Christmas, sorta - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-26
Updated: 2015-12-26
Packaged: 2018-05-09 10:18:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5536214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thegreenofyoureyes/pseuds/Thegreenofyoureyes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Calum had heard, through small talk, that Ashton and Luke were going to be spending Christmas alone together, well he just had to act. No sooner had the words left Ashton’s mouth than Calum was texting his husband to ask if it was okay to invite them up. Of course it was, he knew it would be. By the end of lunch, it was set in stone. Luke and Ashton would be going up to Michael and Calum’s house to spend Christmas with them, their two kids, and other little pieces of their family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of the Twenty-Fifth of December and a Merry Little Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> ITS HERE! MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! Hope y'all have had as much fun with this as I have. It's been an adventure for sure, and I really want to thank you all for reading! Thanks also to Tanniri on here and on Tumblr for all the amazing help and encouragement she's given me. I'm thegreenofhiseyes over on Tumblr if you wanna come say hi! I'd also love to do some prompt work if you have any for me, so feel free to drop by. Merry Christmas again, and Happy New Year!

When Calum had heard, through small talk, that Ashton and Luke were going to be spending Christmas alone together, well he just had to act. No sooner had the words left Ashton’s mouth than Calum was texting his husband to ask if it was okay to invite them up. Of course it was, he knew it would be. By the end of lunch, it was set in stone. Luke and Ashton would be going up to Michael and Calum’s house to spend Christmas with them, their two kids, and other little pieces of their family. 

It was good, really. They could give the kids their presents in person now, which was always more fun. And Michael always went above and beyond with the decorations at their place. He claimed it was a competition with the neighbors, that he wasn't actually /that/ festive, but Ashton could never bring himself to believe that. It didn't matter though, the house was adorable either way. 

If Michael and Calum’s was extravagant, Luke and Ashton’s was simple. There were a few strings of lights, and a few ornaments, a tree in the corner. It was tasteful. 

They were sitting at their little table, just the two of them. Presents had already been opened, and Ashton had made French toast for breakfast. It was just after noon, but they'd only gotten up at ten, so it didn't matter. 

Their house was quiet, only soft piano music playing in the background. Luke had bought them matching pajamas a few weeks back. Luke’s were a bit small on him, but they were soft, and it looked cute, so neither of them really cared. Somewhere along the line, Luke had put a Santa hat on, making him look more like a Who than ever before. God, Ashton loved him. 

“We’ve got to make those pies before we head up, so we should probably start now,” Ashton said, grabbing Luke’s hand gently. 

“Okay,” Luke said, sighing briefly before standing “dishes first, or no?”

“Why don't you start measuring stuff out. I'll get the dishes done.”

The pies were going to be chocolate cream, because they were good, and because children would surely like them. They were, relatively, easy to make as well, which left them with a more leisurely Christmas. 

Everything was pleasantly uneventful. By the time Ashton had finished washing the dishes (their dishwasher having broken a few days prior, they chose not to interrupt someone's holiday and have it fixed) his husband had finished the measurements, apart from the cream itself. 

Ashton took it upon himself to chop the nuts and peel the chocolate while Luke mixed the ingredients together. He could bake just fine, but they had bought the crusts anyway. Less flour meant less mess. 

“Babe? I'm just looking at the weather. I think, with traffic, we’ll want to leave at four to get there by five.” Ashton wasn't shocked by Luke's revelation and had, in fact, been planning on it. 

“That's fine. We’ll be done by 3:30ish, which gives us a bit to get ready.”

“Is this a formal thing? I probably should've asked sooner.”

“I think your red flannel is totally fine, if you want. I'm just gonna do a sweater I think. It's a bit cold, but it's Mike and Cal, they probably wouldn't care if you showed up in a t-shirt.”

They worked in small talk until the pies were in the oven. They looked lovely all around, and Luke only had a bit of flour on his shirt. He hadn't noticed it yet, but they were pajamas, so Ashton decided it didn't matter much. 

They showered together, like they did whenever possible. The water was hot, and Ashton had put in a pine-infuser so it smelt like Christmas. Their dogs had, unfortunately, spent the duration of the couple’s time under the water laying on top of their clothing and coating the fabric with coarse white hairs. Neither of them cared much, and opted instead to use the bit of free time they had before the timer went off just to lay in bed, skin touching skin. It was purely out of love. 

When the timer did go off, Luke went downstairs to take care of it while Ashton dressed. There was snow on their trees in the back, and only a mountain behind them. It wasn't lonely, but they were alone. Downstairs, Luke was singing quietly to whatever song was playing on their radio. Ashton could only take a moment and wonder just how he got so lucky. 

They were on the road by 4:15, which would put them about 20 minutes late. It didn't matter much, though, as Mike and Cal had told them they were running behind anyway. “Don't hurry.”

The drive would've been chaotic for a driver worse than Ashton, in a car less suited for winter, but as it was, they were fine. The snow fell in thick, heavy flakes all around them, blown around a bit and creating an optical illusion akin to what Ashton always assumed time travel would look like. Luke had his hand on Ashton’s arm, and while the radio was off, he was humming to some unknown tune. 

When they got to the Hood-Clifford residence, it was bordering on darkness. There were still, however, two children playing outside. It was cold, of course, but they didn't seem to mind. Hell, they didn't even seem to notice Luke and Ashton pull into their driveway. Only when Luke cleared his throat inconspicuously did either of them look up. 

Within seconds, there was a little girl attached firmly to Ashton’s legs. Thought he would never admit it, it did knock him back just a bit. Luke found himself holding the hand of a little boy, the girl’s more timid twin, as they walked inside. The journey was, needless to say, more difficult for Ashton, but they made it nonetheless. 

“They're here, dads!” Mali, the girl, yelled out once they were safely inside. 

“Are they?” Calum asked, walking into the entrance. 

“We are. Is that alright?” Luke said, taking off his jacket. 

“Yes! Of course. She's just been yelling that with every car that comes by today. She's very excited, you know.”

“Well, we’re very excited, too. Though, I should go get the pies out of the car,” Ashton said, before leaning down to Mali and whispering “and your presents.”

She let him go out alone, which was a rare occurrence. They had gotten both of the kids Barbies, two astronauts, a witch from Halloween, and Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. a month prior Luke and Ashton had played the movie for them while they were babysitting, and according to Calum, Robbie had been talking about it ever since. It made Ashton happy, honestly, that he lived in the family he did. Not only because it meant they got to spend time with him, that Mike and Cal had the kids they'd wanted since they were practically kids themselves, but also because it was a judgment-free environment. A kid like Robbie, Hell, a kid like Mali, needed that. 

There was an hour of playing the Little Mermaid with the kids (Ashton as Ariel, Luke as the prince, Robbie as Flounder, and Mali as Ursula. All at Mali’s insistence) and, well, Ashton never knew that being a mermaid required so much cardio. It felt a little bit nice to know he could go home and sleep. 

Dinner was good. The snow had kept both Michael and Calum’s families away, as they lived farther up in the mountains, so it was just the six of them. Ashton was glad they had gone for many reasons, not the least of which was making Christmas feel whole for the kids. 

The pies were a hit. They were creamy, but not too rich, and the chocolate curls on the top had Mali declaring that she wanted to be a soccer-playing cook when she grew up. Honestly, Ashton had no doubt she could if she could stick with it long enough. And, well, she was only /a child/. He wouldn't hold her to it. 

Presents were next. Because they're wonderful, Mike and Calum had only let the kids open four presents, so Luke and Ashton could watch. They were childfree, by choice, but that didn't mean they didn't want to watch kids experience the best day of the year. 

Mali was playing Santa. In a shocking turn of events, she decided to give the presents they had made a few days prior to Michael and Calum. It was sweet. For the contents inside, though, they sure were wrapped nicely. 

Calum let Michael open his first, of course. He got Mali’s eclectic mess of colors, and loved it so genuinely that Ashton could see the way the fire played with the sparkle in his eyes across the room. Calum was a fan of his fish, too, and promised to put it on his desk at work. He only looked at Ashton briefly enough to confirm that yes, the kid did have help, and was not in fact a child prodigy. Ashton wasn't going to mention it.

Next, Mali decided she and Rob were going to open their presents from Ashton and Luke, next. They loved them, of course, opting to play with them instead of opening more until Michael got bored of it and moved them along. 

It went like this for an hour or so. They seemed to be on the last presents, dwindling on the opening. Ashton actually had a doll in his hands, and was playing some magic game with Rob that he'd lost the plot to some time ago. He didn't mind though. He liked doing funny voices, and Robbie was letting him sit while doing so. 

Only when Calum said “hey, kids? Didn't you have something for Ash and Luke? I think you should probably give it to them, yeah?” Did Mali and, to Ashton’s shock, Robbie, pop up and run to the back of the tree. 

Luke was sitting practically on Ashton’s lap, so it wasn't hard for the kids to give them both the present. It was a fairly flat rectangle, clearly wrapped by them. They looked so proud it melted Ashton’s heart a little bit. 

They managed to open it together, one hand each. It was a drawing of them, clearly done by the kids, in a nice frame. Their dogs were there, and so were Mali and Robbie. It looked a little bit like the place up the mountains Luke and Ashton had taken them for a walk two months prior. It was going straight on their wall, for sure. Next to the other drawings by and pictures of their other nieces and nephews. It was absolutely perfect. 

They left another hour after that, as it was technically 20 minutes past the kids bedtime. It had been another hour filled with, albeit less active, Little Mermaid. The roads had cleared up enough, and there were few enough people driving that Ashton felt totally safe holding Luke’s hand until they were home. 

The dogs greeted them with the kind of cuddly enthusiasm that can only come from little furry beasts that had just been sleeping. Truthfully, Ashton was about ready to take them to bed and get back to that. Luke was in the kitchen, though, doing something mysterious, which was incredibly cute. Ashton could wait. 

As Ashton was sat on the floor, petting the dogs, Luke came out of the kitchen with sleepy eyes and two steaming mugs. 

“It's apple cider. A bit alcoholic, but not much. Thought we should have a bit of a Christmas on our own,” Luke said, placing the mugs on the coffee table and joining Ashton on the floor. Ashton had never heard a better idea. 

There was a reason they lived alone, in the mountains. They liked each other, and they liked being just them. He hadn't even realized there was a small headache forming behind his eyes until Luke pulled him into a cuddle and it melted away. They sat together, petting their dogs and drinking their drinks. 

“Merry Christmas, Lukey,” Ashton said, resting his head on Luke’s broad shoulder. 

“Merry Christmas. I love you a lot, you know? I love our life.”

“Yeah, I love it too. I love you, too.”

They sat for a bit longer, until the drinks were gone and their heads were pleasantly fuzzy. Their large bed had never felt more comfortable than when Ashton was curled up in it this Christmas, tangled with Luke, their dogs next to them. Luke was placing gentle kisses on Ashton’s neck, and it felt like peace. 

There was more snow falling outside now, illuminated just enough by the valley below them to be visible. Ashton drifted off to sleep totally tranquil, totally in love, with the feeling of Christmas filling his soul. Yet, somehow, he couldn't wait for the next day he got to spend with Luke. Or all the rest of them after that, forever.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a continuation of December 19th, in case you were wondering!


End file.
